My computer is exploding, erm any ideas?

[karel]

What seems to be happening is all of a sudden, usually when entering a site, the screen goes blank and then a whole bunch of writing comes up for a second and then the screen pops and the computer then goes on to re-boot itself.

It has happened when I have first turned it on, but usually when it is entering a site.

Is it on its way out?

Thanks for any help Paul

[davidundalicia]

When was the last time you did an antivirus check ???

[karel]

When was the last time you did an antivirus check ???

Automatically every 3 hours......

[karel]

Once its on for a while its usually o.k, the first couple of minutes after starting up, is when it seems to have a funny turn.

[davidundalicia]

Could be your graphics card Paul..........................

[karel]

This was mentioned David, not being a computer boffin on the internal workings, is there anything I can do?

[racefan20]

As David suggested, you need a new video card. Most likely, the fan is going and the card is overheating. You can test that by turning off the pc, taking the side panel off the pc's cabinet, powering up and seeing if things work better, even for a short while.

You can get a decent card at a good price and it's as easy as removing the old one and adding the new one. The only thing you have to worry about is whether your mother board supports AGP, PCI, or PCI-Express (it will support one of the three).

Telling us the age of your pc and other specifics such as installed RAM, version of Windows, etc, will help narrow down what you need.

[karel]

Thank you racefan for your help..as usual.

I have a friend who is going to look at it, I just needed to know the problem to put my mind at rest, the last thing I need at the moment is to pay out for another computer,

Cheers David for your help with this also.

Paul

[bill2006]

Just an idea that might help.

Sometimes the fan and filter get clogged up causing your PC's failsafe system to shut them before real damage happens. This happens with older computers or PC that are on a carpet or near the floor.

Disconnect your computer, open the case and using compressed air or a fine camel brush gently blow the dust out. Clean the fan and then restart.

Hope it works, could save you a trip to the repair shop.

[karel]

Just an idea that might help.

Sometimes the fan and filter get clogged up causing your PC's failsafe system to shut them before real damage happens. This happens with older computers or PC that are on a carpet or near the floor.

Disconnect your computer, open the case and using compressed air or a fine camel brush gently blow the dust out. Clean the fan and then restart.

Hope it works, could save you a trip to the repair shop.

Thanks Bill will do, It is actually at eye level and not near the floor but is getting on a bit, my friend is popping around tonight and I will show him your post, he is pretty good with computers and will look at all angles.

The computer is around 6 years old and with the work on it I may need to upgrade, its just not the best of times for money at the moment as I have just paid out for the yearly holiday abroad.

Paul

[aconstas1]

I've read that if you clean with compressed air, make sure you don't spin the fan as this can generate electricity and damage delicate components. Can anyone confirm this?

[Vasili]

Actually, it is preferred to use a fine brush (as Bill suggested) and have a common vaccuum cleaner (not touching anything!) with a nozzle extension to remove dust and other matter while cleaning...... be sure your system is unplugged completely prior to this "cleaning" process, and that you discharge any static before closing the case and plugging your system back up.


> Compressed air only "moves" dust (and could force it into areas irretractable), not "removes" it like vaccuuming!